St. Gabriel’s School and Centre is a not for profit-organisation and registered charity. St. Gabriel’s provide education and a range of health therapies and clinical intervention programmes to more than 500 children and young adults with multiple physical and/or sensory disabilities in the Mid-West. St. Gabriel’s mission is to enable each child to reach their potential, to live their life in a dignified manner while at the same time being mindful of each child’s individual needs and abilities.

The opening of a dedicated hydrotherapy pool facility at St. Gabriel’s in 2009 was a welcome addition to the existing therapy and rehabilitation services in the region. However as energy costs soared, it became ever more important of finding ways to lower the running costs of the pool so that the facility would remain viable in the long term.

The funding from the JP McManus Benevolent Fund and from Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland has:

• Enabled the installation of two 20kw modulating Combined Heat and Power units to reduce running costs. The system has helped sustain the hydrotherapy pool as a valuable social enterprise with far reaching benefits for the wider community as a whole.